NY DOC Liable for Three Days Extra Segregation
NY DOC Liable for Three Days Extra Segregation
A New York Court of Claims judge recently found the State of New York liable for three days of unwarranted segregation, and has set a trial date to determine the amount of damages due.
As a result of a dirty urinalysis report, Claimant Niko Wilier was confined to segregation on November 8, 2011, and kept there until February 2, 2012. He was found guilty at his disciplinary hearing, and Wilier appealed. In his appeal, Wilier claimed that he was denied the right to call witnesses and the report did not give a date, time, or place of the incident.
Viller's appeal was granted on January 31, 2012, but he was not released from segregation until three days later — on February 2.
Wilier then filed suit, seeking compensation for his entire stay in segregation. However, in a trial on the issue of liability only, Court of Claims Judge Terry Jane Rudderman found that Willer's assertion that he was not allowed witnesses was not supported by the record, and the infraction report did provide the date, time, and place of the incident.
The court also cited New York case law which states that the mere fact that disciplinary charges were ultimately dismissed does not give rise to a cognizable claim absent proof that defendant acted inconsistently with its own rules.
While the court denied Wilier summary judgment on that claim, it granted it for the three extra days he spent in segregation after the infraction was overturned.
"Defendant offers no opposition to this branch of claimant's summary judgment motion nor does defendant offer any explanation as to why claimant was not released on January 31," the court wrote.
A trial on the issue of damages is pending.
See: Wilier v. The State of New York (NY Court of Claims), No. 2013-010-075, Claim No. 122313 (February 7, 2014).
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Related legal case
Wilier v. The State of New York
| Year | 2014 |
|---|---|
| Cite | (NY Court of Claims), No. 2013-010-075, Claim No. 122313 (February 7, 2014) |
| Level | Court of Claims |
| Conclusion | Bench Verdict |